Red pendant
by o-kouseki-o
Summary: [MS IY-WHR crossover] She was sent to work in the organization called the STN-J as the replacement. Little does she know that her life would be turned upside-down as the truth unfolds... along with her powers.
1. Awakening

Disclaimer: I don't own anything at all… Maybe except for all those grammar mistakes I usually make.

Yes… _Witch Hunter Sango_… I know it's a stupid name, but I can't come up with anything better. And of course, I took it from Witch Hunter Robin, since I suddenly got hooked onto that, too. Too bad the series was so short… But I'll try to twist some stuff up, like adding in some romance that they seem to have lacked. And there's the fact that I don't want to copy the anime completely, so there will be some differences.

And my other fanfic, _Butterflies_? It is half dead already, but I'll try my best to think of something to put in there.

Now, I present to you the first chapter of my newest creation. Please enjoy! And I apologize for my grammar mistakes.

**Note:** I changed the name from WHS to Red Pendant for good reasons...

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**Red Pendant  
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Chapter 1 - Awakening

'I grant you power of the five elements,

and with them you shall succeed…

You are my only hope…'

Before I knew it I had bolted upright and snapped my eyes open. Sweat poured down my forehead as I panted for air. My eyes darted from place to place in my new room. All my belongings were sitting outside, in the hallway, waiting to be unpacked and be placed in their proper places, instead of sitting uselessly in boxes… Well actually, _a_ box. But it was a rather large box.

I never really owned much of anything in the 16 years of my life so far, but that would be because I was considered 'poor' to those 'middleclass' people in this society. I had enough money and… _stuff_ in general for me to survive. I had sometimes considered of keeping a pet -a cat, especially- so I may have some company. However, I would not be able to afford or care properly for it.

I sat in my bed for another half a minute, wondering where I was, before the realization had hit me with full force. I had received a call from an organization -the STN-J, it was called- and was asked to work as a replacement and a witch hunter. The person I was replacing had mysteriously disappeared, but they had turned up dead.

Hunted…

That was the only word that could come up in my mind, to describe what had happened to him -or her.

And those witches. I've heard about them, and had even studied about them and their ways. Witches aren't the kinds that we see in cartoons, with a pointy hat, huge nose, and a giant wart on their crooked chin. No, witches looked exactly like a normal human being. Except that they weren't exactly human beings. They were different. They had powers; special powers. They had powers so special and dangerous that even the powerful of the powerful would tremble and fall flat before them within a second.

And I have powers like those.

But I am _not_ a witch.

The witches that I've been informed with are evil and full of danger. They would use their powers for their own evil deeds so they may reign superior.

Not me. I barely use my powers.

And my aim gave the word 'terrible' a new meaning. For more the reason that proved I am _not_ a witch. Actually, my aim is not _that_ bad, but I just feel that it could be much better.

Finally my breathing had regulated again. I rolled my head around, smoothing out any tension I had built up in my neck. I wiped my sweat with the thin blanket that was covering me. Then I laid down again, resting my head on my thin pillow, and tucked myself in under the covers.

But sleep won't come to me again. I couldn't return to slumber-land.

I shifted and changed my position, and shut my eyes again. Yet sleep would not come to claim me. And I was supposed to go to the office building tomorrow, too! Well technically, that would be _today_, considering that my alarm clock read _4:24 a.m._

'Meow…'

Was that meowing I heard? Was it coming out from the window? I sat up again, and wrapped the blanket around me, seeing that I had no real clothes on at that time. Like I've said before, I didn't own much. I dragged myself across the room, and came up to the window. I couldn't see much outside, since it was still dark out. But I _could _see a little white fur ball with ruby eyes and a diamond-cross shaped mark on its forehead.

The little fur ball blinked twice before lifting one of its black paw to paw at my window, as if it was begging me to open it so it may come in. The tapping sound was so light that I had trouble hearing it.

I opened the window to only shoo it away in a calm matter. Instead of leaving, though, the cat came right in. It gracefully landed on the floor on all four, before turning its head to look at me. Before I knew it, it rubbed itself around my legs and feet in a small and tight circle.

I started down at my feet, where the cat is, and immediately pitied it, not only how it didn't have a home, but also how I am not able to keep it.

Finally it sat down and looked up to me, purring. I couldn't help noticing how my lips were slowly twitching up into a small smile. It was just oh-so adorable! I've then decided to pick it up and pet it. I silently walked over to the light switch on the wall and flipped the light on, so I may see the cat's features more clearly.

I had already thought that it was a strange looking cat in the dark, but it was even stranger in the light. It had a creamy short-haired coat and a mane. The cat's ruby eyes kept staring at me as I looked over its mark on its forehead. And I stared at its fluffy twin tails.

This was no ordinary cat. It was a fire cat, an ancient breed that I had heard of only in legends. Further more was that it had no whiskers. Yet it was so cute.

I turned it around and looked under its tails. Clearly it stated that this cat was a girl. I continued to pet her in my arms.

"Sorry girl, but I can't keep you," I whispered into her ear apologetically. "I can't care for you properly. Surely you can find a better home than mine, and people who can afford to keep you."

She looked up to me and meowed, as if she understood what I had just said. But of course she could have. She was a fire cat after all, and they could understand the human tongue in any given language.

She curled up in my arms, and settled to sleep.

I let a sigh escape through my lips in defeat as another smile crept up to them.

I was going to keep her, because she had chosen me to.

- - -

The sun's ray shone through my eye lids, and I felt something hot and moist tickling my left cheek. I moaned and shifted my covers. I felt something soft and furry tapping the exposed skin on my neck.

'Meow…'

Meowing? Why was there meowing beside my ear? Why was there meowing again?

Then of course I remembered everything again. That, and I was going to be late.

I snapped my eyes open and got dressed quickly. The cat watched me as I rushed through everything. She leaped onto my left shoulder as I brushed my hair. I tied it up into a high ponytail.

"So you've decided to stay here?" I asked her.

She nodded her head.

"Do you have a name?"

Then she released a mew that sounded like 'Kirara.'

"Ki… rara?" She nodded her head again.

"Well, let's see what's there to eat…"

I looked over my unoccupied shoulder to glance at my alarm clock. _10:21a.m_, it read. Crap, and I was supposed to be there by 11.

"And I'd better hurry…"

- - -

I slammed the door behind me as I steeped out of the taxi, and I paid for the ride. I felt bad for leaving Kirara at home already. My black robes shuffled quietly as I proceeded towards the building. I had arrived on time; a bit early, even. I paused for a moment to take in the sight.

The building was quite beautiful, with a sort of old look, even though it was quite new. It was only a decade old. It had renovations done once in a while so the building may have the latest technology for work and security and such things.

The copper gates creaked loudly as I pushed it open. I continued down the path, with my work bag and all. My footsteps seem to have echoed on the grey stone steps, although the streets weren't all that quiet. Cool air blasted through me as I stepped inside.

"May I help you, miss?" the security man asked me immediately behind his booth, putting down whatever that he was doing before.

"I am here to see the chief, who had requested me to come," I replied as I stepped towards the booth.

I heard him lift the receiver of his phone and pressed a few buttons. He waited a bit before speaking into it.

"There's a girl here to see you, chief. Shall I send her up? … Yes… Alright…"

He replaced the receiver back in its place, and opened the gates for me.

"Take the elevator to your left; fifth floor. You're the replacement, aren't you?"

I nodded and thanked him before heading up.

A shady yet strong looking character walked past me as I made my way down the hall to the office on the fifth floor. I couldn't help it but to notice him. His golden earrings jingled and his long black coat shuffled as he continued down the path. For a split second, I saw him glancing back to me, and then continued walking. He had metallic lavender eyes, from what I saw. He had his hair tied up into a short dragon's tail. Then he disappeared at the turn of a corner.

I silently walked through the hall, although my footsteps echoed on the stone. I had finally reached the room half a minute later.

Everyone froze at what they were doing and looked up to stare at me as I stepped in. I scanned the room, yet no one made a sound. Finally a short and bald man stepped out behind his desk and approached me.

"Ah, I see that you've found your way here, Sango-san," he smiled warmly. "I am the head chief here in this office, and I must welcome you here."

Then slowly, smiles started to spread on my now co-workers' faces around the room. They must have finally realized who I was or why I was here.

"Everyone, this is Sango-san," he beamed as he turned around to face them, "and she is the replacement that I've found."

A several 'welcome's later, the chief began to speak again.

"Where's Miroku? He should be here right now…"

"Oh, he just walked out a little while ago, just a bit before Sango-san came in," one of them -the girl with long black hair and two long strands spilled over her shoulders- informed.

"Then you must have seen him, am I correct?" the chief turned to me and concluded.

"He's the one with the earrings and the little tail, right?" I asked.

"Yes, and he is your partner during hunts, too… And he's always like that. He may seem serious and cold all the time, but he's not such a bad person once you get to know him. Why isn't he here anyways?"

I nodded, and looked around again, but only moving my eyes this time.

"What should I do?" I asked.

"Mostly Miroku will instruct you, but since he's not here at this time, you can start looking up on the accidents that were caused by the people that we're suspicious of being witches. And your seat's over there." He pointed at the computer at the most left of the long desk, which was also the only one which wasn't occupied.

I nodded once again, and settled in my chair, my neighbour returned to her seat also. It was the girl with the strands.

"Hi, my name is Kikyo," she grinned. "Don't worry, you'll be adapted to us soon enough."

"I know I will," I smiled back.

"And that-" Kikyo pointed to the orange hair boy behind us, "is Shippo. He is the computer master-mind here. He started hacking and breaking into programs for fun since he was ten."

"And I'm Ayame," a cheery red-headed girl suddenly popped out from behind us and grinned. "Sesshomaru's supposed to be here right now, but he's running late. He's out investigating a scene after an accident."

"Except we don't think it was an _accident_," Kikyo added. "A witch was involved in it."

"You'll know who Sesshomaru is once you meet him," Ayame said.

"By the process of elimination," I smiled.

"All right, back to work here," the chief urged us, clapping his hands.

Kikyo and Ayame rolled their eyes and turned towards their computers, while grinning. I couldn't help it but to smile.

These people were nice -much nicer than I had expected.

- - -

Suddenly chairs screeched on the floor as everyone scrambled out of their seats and gathered by Shippo's computer. I turned around to face the back of the group.

"What's happening?" I asked. I had absolutely no idea what's going on.

The silver-haired man with pointy ears and markings on his face -Sesshomaru- turned to face me.

"Shippo had located one of our wanted witches," he told me. "We are planning on how we should capture him now."

I got up from my seat and joined the group, staring into the monitor. A whole bunch of information about our witch was on the screen.

"Natazura Tazuku, age: 35," Shippo read out. "It seems like he hides in the warehouse."

He pressed a few buttons on the phone before hitting the speaker button.

"What is it?" the person on the other end muttered. He sounded annoyed and frustrated.

"It's me, and I've found some information about this Natazura Tazuku," Shippo told him. "And I've found the outline of the place. I'll send it over to you right now."

"Good work."

Wait! That voice… It had to belong to that Miroku. I just knew it.

"Um… About Sango-san-" Ayame started, but he had hung up on the other end already.

"Figures…" she mumbled.

Ayame's red pigtails bounced as she turned sharply to prepare herself. Kikyo and Sesshomaru also prepared themselves. Must be for the hunt, I supposed. They all tucked their special guns into their jackets' pockets.

"What should I do?" I asked.

Kikyo paused for a moment before turning to me.

"I don't think you can come with us yet," she told me, sounding apologetic. "Miroku's not here to instruct you, and we can't do anything about it."

I understood what she meant, so I nodded my head and sat back down in my seat. Before long, the three of them left. I guessed that I would have to look into the other 'accidents' in the meanwhile. After a few minutes of clicking and rolling around with the mouse, a voice called for me. I snapped my head up and turned around, to find that the chief was the one who had been calling me.

"I think I should take you to the site of the hunt," he smiled. "You may be able to help them if they've stumbled across any problems, and you may learn how the hunts are done."

I felt a smile crept up to my face as I got up and left with him, leaving Shippo and Jaken -the chief's assistant- alone in the office.

Several minutes later, we had arrived at the hunting site. The others must have arrived already, seeing that the garage door for delivery was opened. I had some trouble seeing the inside of the warehouse as the sun was setting already. I stepped into the building, and the smell of cardboard boxes and gasoline filled my nose. I continued walking, but then stopped in my tracks. The lighting wasn't so well, but I could see that there was a Circle at my feet.

Luckily I had stopped, or else I would have stepped onto it and fall into the trap I was sure that everyone else had fallen into. I bent down and swiped one of my fingers over it, picking up the chalk and sand while messing the Circle up. Immediately the Circle fixed itself again.

_I thought so._ The witch we were hunting used this method, of which he will be able to control the feet of his victims.

Sounds of grunts and objects clashing filled the air. I followed the noise, while being careful and aware of any other Circles that may be lying around, waiting for an unsuspecting victim to step on them. It seemed like I forgot to mention that I knew the types and the powers of the Craft of which the witches use. Finally, I came across the area of where the action was held in, with my hands stuck in my pockets. I had a habit of doing that.

Everyone was down on the ground, with or without objects crashing into them. It seemed to me that they've all blindly stepped onto the Circles. Sounds of pained grunts filled the air. In the middle was the witch; the witch that we were to hunt. I paused at the doorway as he noticed me.

"What's this? Another woman?" he crackled. "I'll waste you, too, like how I've done to them!"

The hunters slowly sat up to stare at me, and I heard a sharp intake of air in Ayame's direction. They were all probably wondering what I was doing here. But heck, I was here to help them.

Suddenly the witch widened his eyes and several objects were lifted off the ground. They were thrown towards me by his powers. I stared at them intensely.

Fire…

Burn…

Flames burst forth on the objects and reduced them to nothing but ashes while I didn't move an inch. The witch seemed surprised, as were the other hunters. Yes, I had used the Craft that I've been blessed with.

He threw some more stuff at me by force, but the result was the same. Good thing that they were large targets, otherwise, I would have missed by a foot or two.

The witch backed into a wall as I stepped forward. My fellow hunters seemed to have recovered and were well enough to finish the hunt. I just needed to keep the witch busy enough for them to move in.

I aimed for the area a few inches beside his right ear, but… I missed by a few feet. Sparks started everywhere as more bounced off the wall. But before I knew it, shot at the witch were made.

_What?_ I stared at him as he fell down, probably unconscious.

"Don't worry, he's not dead," Kikyo told me. "We don't kill them; we just capture them. Then we send them over to the Factory."

She must have sensed my confusion.

"Sesshomaru, call the Factory," a not-so-familiar but not _un_familiar voice ordered.

It was Miroku.

He stepped up beside me quietly. I barely heard his footsteps.

"That was dangerous," he told me. "Don't do it again. Fires are hard to extinguish."

Then he walked off, leaving us again.

"Don't mind him," Ayame piped up. "He's _always_ like that. But… _that_ was amazing!"

"So you're a Craft-user?" Kikyo asked.

"You can say that," I replied.

But of course, I am _not _a witch.

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So that was the first chapter, with many more to come. For some reason, I can't seem to leave Kirara out of any stories I have. She just _has_ to be there. Maybe it's because of her cuteness…

Once again, I apologize for my grammar mistakes. Everyone should know that they're horrible by now. Sort of like Robin's aim without her glasses… Heh heh…

But anyhow, review please!


	2. Struggling

Disclaimer: If I did own both anime, then I would have made them kiss… But then again, I would not have come up with such characters. Disappointing, isn't it?

Yep, I'm back, and I'm still hooked on both anime. Sorry that it's been a long time since I've last updated. I got this huge writer's block, and not to mention playing Harvest Moon on the computer is very _very _addictive. Harvest Moon itself is addictive.

And a note here, that the title name was changed from _Witch Hunter Sango_, as mentioned in the re-updated first chapter. Now it sounds so much better, doesn't it? No clue why I named it Red Pendant, though.

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Red Pendant

Chapter 2 - Struggling

"Hey Kirara," I giggled as she pounced on me when I opened the door.

She muzzled my cheek as she balanced herself on my right shoulder, and then began licking me. It always surprised me at how light she was; that she was practically as light as a feather.

"It was quite an exciting day, I must say," I sighed contently as I shut the door behind us. "I actually had my first hunt. I didn't do as well as I should have, though."

'Maybe I can assist you in your next hunts,' an older female voice suggested.

Actually, I wasn't surprised when I understood what she had said. I was just surprised that she trusted me so much already to let me understand her.

"No, I don't think I want to drag you into such danger yet."

'Yet?'

"Aren't you a bit too young to be involved in a witch hunt?"

'Sango, I'm actually more than 500 years old.'

Well, looks can be _really_ deceiving. I mean, she is more than 500 years old, yet she is so cute.

"I don't think they would appreciate me bringing in a fire cat into a hunt when they've already gotten enough fire on their hands."

'But I'm a _fire_ cat, not a normal household cat. Maybe I can drop in once in a while then?'

"Maybe."

I hung my clothes up as I got ready to take my short but hot shower. I couldn't afford a large hydro bill, after all. Actually, I couldn't afford anything too costly. I cooked some extra chicken meat for Kirara as I cooked my own dinner.

"Kirara, do you think I'm a witch?" I suddenly asked her as I ate. It had been bugging me for quite a while.

'That depends on what you think you are. If you think you're not, then you're not.'

"But I'm asking for _your_ opinion."

There was a small and short pause before she answered me.

'Maybe, maybe not.'

I groaned in pain as my sore back made hard contact with the wall again. The witch we were hunting had some sort of physic power that could throw us hunters around. I stared at his hands and aimed for it.

Burn…

Instantly sparks burst forth and set his hands on fire. The other hunters shot him down with their special bullets as their chance came. Soon enough, the witch was unconscious. But then I had realized that I had also set the ground on fire by accident.

"Amazing, you did it again!" Ayame cheered.

"Did what?" I asked, blinking in confusion.

I really had no idea what she was talking about.

"The fire!" she laughed.

"That… That was nothing."

Miroku then picked this exact moment to stroll by me.

"Let's go," he told me. "I just received a call from the director. He said he wanted to see you."

Ayame just sighed and shrugged in defeat, and then she walked away, probably back to where Kikyo and Sesshomaru were. I followed Miroku back to his car and took the passenger seat. The door slammed shut as he got in.

"You should really do something about that aim of yours," he said.

I stayed quiet, even though I really wanted to make some other remark to get back at him. Out of the corner of my eye, I caught his metallic lavender eyes lingering over my face's profile before starting the car's engine and driving off, back to the office building. Miroku punched for the fifth floor in the elevator and we waited for it to take us there once we had arrived. We walked down the hallway that took us away from our work office and headed up the steps once we had reached them. Miroku opened the door for us and we got into the director's office.

He turned around in his rolling chair once he had heard us coming in to face us.

"I am glad that you could make it at such a short notice," he smiled.

I stood in my place and nodded, while doing my best not to cough and gag at the smell of smoke from his cigar. If I were to spend enough time in here, I would die of second-hand smoke…

"I've been watching you, Sango," he told me.

He'd been watching me? What did this mean? Was he going to make me leave? Did the company find someone else who was more capable and better at this job than I? All these unanswered questions buzzed around in my head as I prepared myself for the worst that could come.

"We had decided to keep you permanently."

That was _not_ what I had expected. I thought that he was going to fire me for setting fire all over the place every time I used my Craft.

"As the result of this, here are your earpiece, phone, and Orbo for the hunts yet to come."

He reached into a drawer in his desk and pulled out the gadgets. He laid them on his desk, and I stared at them. I reached over and took the earpiece and phone, but I left the Orbo alone.

"I will take the earpiece and phone, but I will leave the Orbo alone," I said, "for it frightens me, and I don't think I'll need it."

"Yes, you are quite a powerful hunter, and I can accept that," he agreed as he took a puff from his cigar. "But I do believe that you use techniques in hunting that differ from ours before, and I do hope that you will adjust yourself to it. I can assure you that our way is probably the best way so far."

I nodded my head, understanding that he was talking about their policy of taking witches in alive.

"Another thing that I would suggest is for you to work on your targeting."

Why does everyone have something against my aim! Why do they have to make such a great fuss over it! I mean, I'm not a perfect person… Okay, so I might have been overreacting just by a little bit, but I had a good reason for it.

"You may go now."

I nodded my head and turned around to leave. Miroku was obviously not moving since he wasn't dismissed yet. I shuffled out the door and down the hall, making my way back to the office. Seconds later, the director ¾ Zaizen-san¾ could be heard again. I paused for a moment to hear what he was saying. I knew it wasn't polite to eavesdrop, but I was curious.

"So she's a Craft-user… Keep a close eye on her."

"Understood. I have also already sent someone else to watch her since she had arrived when I can't be."

Someone else? Who could it be? It can't be my co-workers, except for Miroku himself. But that wasn't the case. I was forced to be snapped out of my thoughts and to continue walking when I heard the office door opening and Miroku's footsteps.

Who did he send to keep a close watch of me? And… How could he do such a thing? It would only mean that he wasn't very fond of me and my aim already, but it was only my second day.

I continued to walk down the long hallway, with Miroku trailing behind me.

Days passed by quickly when I was working. Time slipped through our fingers easily as we devoted ourselves in researches and the hunts of witches. Four out of five days would involve hunts. We considered ourselves lucky on that huntless day, and we used it to refresh ourselves, even though we still did research on them. Well, most of us did. Miroku was the exception, for he tend to disappear.

My eyes drooped and ached as I approached my fifth hour staring at the monitor intensely. So far, we didn't have a hunt today… yet. It was really odd for us to go by two days without a single witch to hunt. Witches always surrounded us in the streets, whether we knew it or not. So theoretically, out of the ten people we could have shot, at least one of them would have been a witch. Except we couldn't go around shooting everyone we saw on the street. It would be chaos if we did that, and we would only end up shooting ourselves.

I was jerked back to reality when my head slipped from the palm of my hand. Miroku chose to walk into the room that moment, and placed something on my desk. I leaned over to get a better look at it.

It was a pair of half-moon glasses with a black plastic frame. How appropriate. Apparently the thought of me melting the frame of the spectacles with my flames never crossed his mind.

I sharply turned my head around into his direction as a frown took over my features.

"Perhaps you can aim accurately now," he muttered with a deeper voice than usual.

"What..?" I started, but he was ignoring me.

What's with that attitude anyway? Apparently he thought just because I'm younger than him, he could treat me this way.

"My vision is perfectly fine…" I murmured to no one in particular.

And at what degrees did he pick them at, anyway? It wouldn't help me at all if they were totally off. I picked them up with my thumb and index finger and looked through them. I was confused when I tried them on, for everything seemed the same. I took them off and frowned at him again.

"You'll see in time," he mumbled.

I glared at him and shot him one of my dangerous looks. If looks could kill… Actually, they could in my case. He _could_ have multiple burns on his body and be rolling on the floor right now, trying to put my flames out.

Maybe I could set his hair on fire…

"Don't even _think_ about it," he warned me through gritted teeth, as if he had been reading my mind.

A bald Miroku could be quite amusing… To me, to everyone. We would have a good laugh over it for days, and maybe even weeks.

"Too late…" I muttered as I turned back to my research.

Minutes later, all was quiet again, except for the clicking and the tapping on the keyboard and mouse.

My senses were on the edge as I felt eyes on the back of my head. Metallic lavender eyes…

* * *

So that's the second chapter. It was supposed to be longer, but I cut it short. I've realized that my chapters are too long to keep my audiences' attention (if I have any to begin with… But that's not the point.) It's hard to keep the excitement going, too.

So, review please!


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